Edgar scosield



E. SCOFIELD.

DOUBLE SEAL FRICTION CAP.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 10. 1921.

Patented Aug. 22, 1922.

M C] rtozue UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDGAR 'SCOFIELD, OF YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO AIQ'QHOR CAP CLOSURECORPORATION, OF LONG ISLAND CITY, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK,

DOUBLE-SEAL FRICTION CAP.

Specification of Application filed June 10,

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDGAR SooFIELD, a

York, in the county of'New York, State of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Double-Seal Friction Gaps ofwhich the following is a specification. I This invention relates broadlyto packaging and more specially to a friction seal cap and a packagemade with this cap.

The principal object of the present invention is a friction seal caphaving a plurality of sealing zones wherein the effective sealingpressure is distributed throughout the sealing zones. I

Another obj ect of the present invention is a friction cap provided witha plurality of sealing zones having stiffened force transmitting meansarranged between the sealing zones in such manner that the sealingforces of one zone are transmitted to the sealing area of another zonewhereby the several zones cooperate with one another to produce aneffective seal.

A further object of the present invention is, more specially, a frictioncap provided witha yieldable skirt and having a plurality of sealingzones arranged therein with a force transmitting zone between thesealing zones and wherein the force transmitting zone is stiffened inthe direction of the length of the skirt and is adapted to yieldcircu1nferentially of the skirt.

Another and more specific object of the present. invention is a frictionseal cap having a skirt depending from a cover portion with acircumferential sealing zone near the cover portion and with a ribbedsection beneath the sealing zone and a'second sealing zone belowtlie'ribbed section.v

Another and specific object of the present invention is a closure capof. the friction type having a skirt provided with a plurality ofsealing zones and wherein the yield of the sealing zones during thesealing operation'istoward an area or zone which is between the sealingzones and wherein both the upper edge and the lower edgeof the cap areformed in such manner as to resist stretching.

Another and specific object of the present invention isa frictionsealing cap having a skirt depending from a cover portion and with aplurality of annular sealingzones Letters Patent. Patented A110. 22,1922. 1921. Serial No. 476,423.

provided in the skirt and with outwardly extending knurling between thesealing zones.

Another and specific object of the present invention is a frictionsealing cap having a skirt depending from a cover portion and with aplurality of annular'sealing zones as a glass jar or the like.

Other and further objects will in part be obvious and will in part bepointed out hereinafter by reference to the accompanying drawings andwherein like parts are represented by like characters throughout theseveral figures thereof.

Realizing that the present invention may be embodied in constructionsother than those specifically shown and described it is to be understoodthat the disclosure here with is merely illustrative and is in no wayintended to be taken in the limiting sense.

Figure 1 isa perspective view illustrating a package formedby a glassjar or the like and a cap comprising-the present invention applied tothe mouth of the said jar.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectionized portion of the side wall of thecontainer and the skirt of the cap and'illustrating the cap prior tobeing applied.

F igure3 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing the cap as partiallytelescoped over the end of the container wall so that one sealing zoneis effective, and illustrating the active forces in the skirt at thistime.

Figure i is view similar to Figure 3 and illustrates forces which areactive when the second sealing zone is passing over the side wall of thecontainer.

*igure 5 illustrates a cap in position and is a section through theouter portion of one of the corrugations.

Figure 6 is a'view similar to Figure 5 illustrating a section throughthe valley or inner portion of one of the corrugations.

Figure 7 is a plan view showing a horizontal section taken through line77 Figure 6.

In the commercial art of packaging it .;has become common practice topackage certain solider plastic substances in containers having frictioncap covers, which caps are adapted for removal without destruction. sothat the cap may be re-used simply as a t oyer, while the contents of acontainer are being consumed. One of the oldest types of such frictioncovers'comprises acap with a plain cylindrical skirt. This type'of capencountered many difficulties duetothe fact thatcommercial glass isseldom an exact size or shape. Since the metal caps weremade by"mechanical dies, the :caps were substantiallyofuniform shape and size.The result wast'hatordinary slip caps that were accurate would not fitglass that varied and such caps were not adaptedto seal glass of theordinary commercial run with the variations which arecommerciallyacceptable.

The next step in the art lwasthat of pro- :vidin a slip cap with a skirthaving an inward y extendin grooveof such depth and "shape'asto' sligtly stretch and with the as to permit the sealing zone to occur a groovepositioned in a'ca'p in such manner sufiicient distance downward on theside wall "of the skirt below tl'iecover to permitthe fskirt toflex andconform both in size and shapewo glass and thereb accommodate glasswhich departed, wit in commercial standards, from the size and'shape'being sealed.- In this type of cap the sealing forces, due to elasticityof the metal, were concentrated on a single zone and, if for anyreason,'this portion oft-he metal was "stretched beyond the' elasticlimit therewas aliabilityof the seal becoming ineffective.

The present invention overcomes the difli culties of the knownart byproviding a cap having a plurality of circumferential seals,

or gripping .zones," with]the arrangement of the zones being such thatthe sealing forces in one zone are transmitted to, and reenforce," theactive sealing "forces in another zone.- Thisa'ction greatly increasesthe holding qualities of the cap aswell as increases the safety factorofthe'security of the seal.

While it is desirable it is, nevertheless not 'essential, that allthesealing zones shall be dust onair tight, One of the zonesanay comprise acircumferential I continuous conwire bead common'to the metal workingart. The cap is applied by telescoping the same over'the side wall of "alass ar or the like having a circumferences ightlygreaterthan I theinside c rcumference of the sealing zones.

This sets up forces in the sealing zones which; forces are transmittedin both directions from the sealing zones; to the 'wire edge on one sideof thelower sealing zone and to the top or cover on the other side ofthe upper sealing z'one. Both the wire edge and the top actas abutmentstending to resist the force producedby stretching at the sealing zone.Since these forces are resisted by the abutment the forcesare thereforetransmitted to or thrown into the knurled part of the cap betwe'en thesealing zones. This knurled part is stiff inthe longitudinal directionof the skirt of the cap but is capable of yielding circumferentially.

in view of the fact that the caps" are made ofsheet tin orthe likewhichis an elastic material. The knurlingproduces an elastic field which actsas a constricting spring that yields sufficiently to prevent the sealingaction to take place andv uses thestore'd Q energy put in by thesealing-actionto pull or resist circumferential stretching. The

sealing zones" therefore'are continually under a spring constrictingaction tendingto maintain the sealing zones under efficient sealingpressure at alltimes'. In-view of the fact that the knurled portion ofthe skirt is stiff in a direction of the length of the skirt ittherefore follows that the sealing forces from the lower zonesare'transmitted through these, stiffened ribs to" the upper I zone andwhen the upper zone passes over a glass or the like, side wallthesealing w p forces active in the upper "zone are trans mitted back toincrease the sealing action at the lower zone.

Referring now tothe drawings which I illustrate one embodiment of thepresent in vention the cap may comprise a cover portion 1 from whichextends a downwardly depending skirt having a sealing zone 2 comprisingan inwardly directedportion,

with theconv'exed portion on the interior of the skirt and the concaveportion on the exterior of the skirt; and which sealing zone is in theupper portion of the skirt.An outwardly curved circumferential knurledportion 3' comprising ribs 4 aud' valleys fo Y is provided adjacent thesealing zone 2.

This knurled portion; is stiff in the direction of'the'length of theskirt, but is adapted to yield in the direction circumferentially of theskirt. A second restricted poition or sealing zone G is providedbelowtheknurled part 3 and the lower side wall of this-sealing zone 6 iscontinued downwardly and outwardly in the 'formof a curve with theconcave portion on the outer part of the skirt and theconveked portionon the inner part of the skirt. The edge of the skirt is folded uponitself to provide a wire edge finish 8 as is common in the metal workingart.

- in the sealing operation the cap is placed loosely on the mouth of aglass or similar container 9 as, is illustrated in Figure 2. The cap isthen telescoped over the mouth of the container by applying forces inthe direction of the arrow A. The application of the forces indicated bythe arrow A causes a wedging action between the rounded upper end 10 ofthe side wall 9 of the container and the sealing zone 6, which actiontends to stretch the sealing zone 6. The forces tending to stretch thissealing zone 6 and to slightly flatten the curve are transmitted in bothdirections from the sealing zone 6.

The forces transmitted to the edge of the cap areresisted by thereenforcement or wire edge 8 which is twice the strength of a singlethickness of the metal, therefore the reaction forces are transmittedinto the knurled part 3 as is indicated by the arrows B in Figure 3. Asthe telescoping action is continued the zone 2 begins to be active andthe forces set up by the wedging of the Wall 10 past the zone 2 likewiseextends in both directions from the curve. The forces extending upwardlyare met and resisted by the strength of the top of the cover so that theeffective active forces are therefore again transmitted into the knurledportion 8 and since the knurled portion is stiff in the direction of thelength of the skirt these forces are transmitted back against thesealing zone 6 so that the effective sealing forces in the lower zone isincreased by the action of the sealing forces in the upper zone.

lVhen it is desired to open the package the skirt of the cap is eithertapped gently with some tool having suflicient weight to slightlyflatten the sealing zones 2 and 6 in the skirt against the side wall ofthe container as an anvil and permanently stretch the skirt at thesealing zones so that the gripping or restricting action is destroyedsui'liciently to permit the user to lift the cap and expose the contentsof the vessel. This same stretching action may be obtained by rollin thecap against a suitable surface or in any other mechanical way whichtends to permanently stretch the skirt of the cap sufliciently to breakthe sealing forces. From the foregoing it will appear that the presentinvention provides a simple fricton seal which is made by telescoping apre formed cap over a substantially incompressible side wall and whereina multiplicity of seals are provided between the cap and the side wall.The sealing energy or forces are stored in the mechanically arrangedstruc ture of the cap and these stored forces continue to exert pressureon the sealing zones in such manner as tends to constrict the sealingzones against the glass side wall and thus maintain a plurality of sealsuntil the skirt is permanently stretched to break the seal. 1

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

l. A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending from saidcoverporiion, a sealing zone in the upper port-ion of said skirt,another sealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, and meansbetween said sealing zones for transmitting the forces effective in onezone to the other zone.

2. A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending from saidcover portion, a continuous annular sealing zone in the upper portion ofsaid skirt, another sealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, andmeans between said sealing zones for transmitting the forces effectivein one zone to the other zone.

3. A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending from saidcover portion, a sealing zone in the upper portion of said skirt,anothersealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, elastic meansbetween said sealing zones for transmitting the forces effective in onezone to the other zone.

4.. A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending fromsaid cover por tion, a sealing zone in the upper portion of said skirt,another sealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, and meansbetween said sealing zones adapted to expand circumferentially and totransmit longitudinally the forres effective in one zone to the otherzone.

ii closure cap comprising a cover por tion, a skirt depending from saidcover portion, a sealing zone in the upper portion of sail skirt,another sealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, and meansbetween said sealing zones for transmitting the forces effective in onezone to the other zone, and reenforcing means at the edge of the skirt.

6. A. closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending fromsaid cover portion, a continuous annular sealing zone in the upperportion of said skirt, another sealing zone in the lower portion of saidskirt, and elastic means between said sealing zones for transmitting theforces effective in one zone to the other zone.

7., A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending fromsaid cover portion, a sealing zone in the upper portion of said skirt,another sealing zone in the lower portion of said skirt, and meansbetween said sealing zones adapted to expand circumferentially and totransmit longitudinally the forces effective in one zone to the otherzone, and reenforcing means at the edge of the skirt.

8. A. closure cap comprising a cover portion, a skirt depending fromsaid cover portion, a continuous annular sealing zone in the upperportion of said skirt, another sealinc; zi'lnein the lower portion ofsaid skirt, QlriSlTlC means, between, sa d, sealing zones adapted toexpand clrcumferentially and to transmit?longitudinally the forceseffective in one zone to the other zone, and'reenforcmg means atthe edgeof the skirt.

i 9, A1 closure CLPflOIIlPI'lSIIlg 1n combination a cover portion, askirtdepending from saidcover port on, a knurled zone in said,skirt-with theknurlmg being outward, and sealing zoneson each GILlGOfStIlCllUlHI'lGd portion. a v

10,,A closure cap comprising in comb nation a cover portion, a skirtdepending from said cover portion, a knurled zone in said said,coverportion, a knurled zone invsaid skirt 'with'the knurling beingoutward, and sealing'zones on each side of said knurled portion, withsaid sealing zones comprising annular ribs on the interior.

.12. A closure cap comprising-in combination a cover portion, askirtdepending from I saidcover portion, a knurledzone in saidskirt-with the knurling being outward and :thedirection of the ribsthereof being in the direction ,Of?th6 length of the skirt, and sealingzoneson each side of said knurled portion, with said sealing zonescomprising ann'ular i'ibs on the interior of the skirt.

13. A closure cap comprising a cover por tion, a skirtdepending fromsaid cover portion, a pair of "sealing zones .in said skirt, andconstricting means between said sealing zones. 1

l4. Aclosure-cap comprisinga cover portion, a skirt depending from saidcover P01? tion, a pair of sealing zones in said skirt,andfconstricting, means between said sealing; zonesandxefl'ective onboth zones.

- 155.; A closure cap comprising a cover portion, a; skirt dependingfrom said cover portion, .a pair of sealing zones in said skirt, andconstricting means between said sealing zones in combination with acontainer having substantially incompressible sealing walls adjacent"the mouth thereof.

16; closure cap comprising a cover portion, askirtdepending from saidcover portion, apair of sealing zones in said skirt, and constrictingmeans between. said seal-f ing .zonesand effective on both. zones, in

combination with a container having substantially incompressible sealingwalls adjacent the mouth thereof. 17; A closure cap compris ng a coverportion, a sealingzoneachacent said cover por tion insuch manner thatpart of the seall ingiorces, are transmitted .to the edge of d coverportion, slower sealing zone in of said skirt and adapted to resistsealing forces from the lower zone, and means elastic 111 acircumferential direction and ar ranged bet-ween said sealing zones, toabsorb sealing forces from each zone.

' l8. .A, closure capcomprisinga clover portion, sealing zoneadjacentsaid cover por- 'orcesare t "ansmitted to the edge of scorerportion, a lower sealingfzone in saidiskirt, strengthening means on theedge of said skirt and; adapted to resist sealing forces from the lowerzone, and fmean's elastic in a circumferentialdirection and arrangedbetween said sealing zones tolab scrb sealing forces fromeach zone, saidsaidicover portion, a lower sealing, zone in said skirt,strengtheningmeans on the edge of saul skirt and adapted to resist sealing forcesfrom the lower zone, ,and means elastic in a circumterential d rectionand arran ed between said sealing zones to absorb sealing forces fromeach zone, said means id skirt strengthening; means on the edge.

tion in such manner thatpart ofv the seal being adapted to distributethe sealing forces froinone zone to the other zone, in combination witha container having" sub stantiatly 'LHCOIUPIGSSlblQI SlClG walls at thesealing zone.

20. A closure cap comprisinga coverportion, a sealing zone adjacent saidcover por-' tion insuch manner that-part of the seal ing forces aretransmitted, to theedge of.

said cover portion, a lower sealing zone in said skirt, strengtheningmeans. on the edge of said-skirt and adapted to resist sealing forcesfrom the lower zone, and means elastic in a circumferential directionand stiff in a longitudinaldirection and arranged between said sealingzones to absorb sealing forces from each zone.

21. closure cap comprising a cover portion, a sealing zone adjacent saidcover portion in such manner that part of the sealing forces aretransmitted to the edge of said cover portion, a lower sealing zone nsaid skirt, strengthening means on the edge of "said skirt and adaptedtoresist forces from the lower zone, and means elastic in acircumferential direction and stiff in a longitudinal direction andarranged between said sealing zones to absorb sealing forces from eachzone, said means being adapted to distribute the sealing-forces from onezone to l the other. zone, in combination, with a conta ner havingsubstantially incompressible side walls at the sealing zone. I EDGARSCOFIELD.

